作业治疗对不随意运动型脑瘫手眼协调能力的影响

目的:探讨作业治疗对不随意运动型脑瘫患儿手眼协调能力的临床疗效。方法:选取2017年5月~2018年9月在广州中医药大学附属南海妇产儿童医院儿童康复科就诊的不随意运动型脑瘫患儿30例,进行作业治疗手眼协调训练,采用Peabody精细运动发育量表(PDMS-FM)及FMFM(手眼协调E项)评定临床疗效。结果:患儿FMQ评分、FMFM(E区)评分随治疗时间推移呈逐渐增加趋势,第二次评估与第一次评估比较有统计学意义(P<0.05),第三次评估和第二次评估有统计学意义(P<0.01)。结论:作业治疗手眼协调训练对不随意运动型脑瘫精细运动及手技巧有明显改善作用。     

Short‐term plasticity following motor sequence learning revealed by diffusion magnetic resonance imaging

Current noninvasive methods to detect structural plasticity in humans are mainly used to study long‐term changes. Diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was recently proposed as a novel approach to reveal gray matter changes following spatial navigation learning and object‐location memory tasks. In the present work, we used diffusion MRI to investigate the short‐term neuroplasticity that accompanies motor sequence learning. Following a 45‐min training session in which participants learned to accurately play a short sequence on a piano keyboard, changes in diffusion properties were revealed mainly in motor system regions such as the premotor cortex and cerebellum. In a second learning session taking place immediately afterward, feedback was given on the timing of key pressing instead of accuracy, while participants continued to learn. This second session induced a different plasticity pattern, demonstrating the dynamic nature of learning‐induced plasticity, formerly thought to require months of training in order to be detectable. These results provide us with an important reminder that the brain is an extremely dynamic structure. Furthermore, diffusion MRI offers a novel measure to follow tissue plasticity particularly over short timescales, allowing new insights into the dynamics of structural brain plasticity.     

头针联合热敏灸对卒中后肢体痉挛患者血清S100β、NGF水平和肢体运动功能的影响

目的:探讨头针联合热敏灸对卒中后肢体痉挛患者血清S100β、神经生长因子(NGF)水平和肢体运动功能的影响。方法:选取70例脑卒中后肢体痉挛患者;所有患者随机分组,对照组35例给予新Bobath技术及低频电刺激,研究组35例给予头针联合热敏灸治疗。每1周为1个疗程,共治疗3个疗程。两组治疗后均随访12周。比较两组患者临床疗效,评估两组患者肢体功能改善情况,检测并比较血清S100β、NGF水平。结果:与治疗前比较,治疗后及随访结束后两组ADL、FMA评分升高,MAS分级均有明显改善(P<0.05),且研究组优于对照组(P<0.05);两组患者血清S100β、NGF水平均降低,且研究组低于对照组(P<0.05);两组临床总有效率差异无统计学意义(P>0.05)。结论:头针联合热敏灸可更加有效改善卒中后肢体痉挛患者肢体运动功能恢复,提高生活质量,可能与降低患者血清S100β、NGF水平有关。     

Relationship between EMG-detected and ultrasound-detected fasciculations in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: A prospective cohort study

ObjectivesFasciculation potentials (FP) are an important consideration in the electrophysiological diagnosis of ALS. Muscle ultrasonography (MUS) has a higher sensitivity in detecting fasciculations than electromyography (EMG), while in some cases, it is unable to detect EMG-detected fasciculations. We aimed to investigate the differences of FP between the muscles with and without MUS-detected fasciculations (MUS-fas).MethodsThirty-one consecutive patients with sporadic ALS were prospectively recruited and in those, both needle EMG and MUS were performed. Analyses of the amplitude, duration, and number of phases of EMG-detected FPs were performed for seven muscles per patient, and results were compared between the muscles with and without MUS-fas in the total cohort.ResultsThe mean amplitude and phase number of FP were significantly lower in patients with EMG-detected FP alone (0.39 ± 0.25 mV and 3.21 ± 0.88, respectively) than in those with both FP and MUS-fas (1.22 ± 0.92 mV and 3.74 ± 1.39, respectively; p < 0.0001 and p = 0.017, Welch’s t-test).ConclusionSmall FP may be undetectable with MUS. MUS cannot replace EMG in the diagnostic approach for ALS.SignificanceClinicians should use a combination of EMG and MUS for the detection and quantitative analysis of fasciculation in ALS.     

Plasma miRNA-based signatures in CRC screening programs

Colorectal cancer (CRC) screening programs help diagnose cancer precursors and early cancers and help reduce CRC mortality. However, currently recommended tests, the fecal immunochemical test (FIT) and colonoscopy, have low uptake. There is therefore a pressing need for screening strategies that are minimally invasive and consequently more acceptable to patients, most likely blood based, to increase early CRC identification. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) released from cancer cells are detectable in plasma in a remarkably stable form, making them ideal cancer biomarkers. Using plasma samples from FIT-positive (FIT+) subjects in an Italian CRC screening program, we aimed to identify plasma circulating miRNAs that detect early CRC. miRNAs were initially investigated by quantitative real-time PCR in plasma from 60 FIT+ subjects undergoing colonoscopy at Fondazione IRCCS Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori, then tested on an internal validation cohort (IVC, 201 cases) and finally in a large multicenter prospective series (external validation cohort [EVC], 1121 cases). For each endoscopic lesion (low-grade adenoma [LgA], high-grade adenoma [HgA], cancer lesion [CL]), specific signatures were identified in the IVC and confirmed on the EVC. A two-miRNA-based signature for CL and six-miRNA signatures for LgA and HgA were selected. In a multivariate analysis including sex and age at blood collection, the areas under the receiver operating characteristic curve (95% confidence interval) of the signatures were 0.644 (0.607–0.682), 0.670 (0.626–0.714) and 0.682 (0.580–0.785) for LgA, HgA and CL, respectively. A miRNA-based test could be introduced into the FIT+ workflow of CRC screening programs so as to schedule colonoscopies only for subjects likely to benefit most.     

Actin binding proteins,actin cytoskeleton and spermatogenesis – Lesson from toxicant models

Actin cytoskeleton is crucial to support spermatogenesis in the mammalian testis. However, the molecular mechanism(s) underlying changes of actin cytoskeletal organization in response to cellular events that take place across the seminiferous epithelium (e.g., self-renewal of spermatogonial stem cells, germ cell differentiation, meosis, spermiogenesis, spermiation) at specific stages of the epithelial cycle of spermatogenesis remain largely unexplored. This, at least in part, is due to the lack of suitable study models to identify the crucial regulatory proteins and to investigate how these proteins work in concert to support actin dynamics. Much of the information on the role of actin binding proteins in the literature, namely the actin bundling proteins, actin nucleation proteins and motor proteins, are either findings based on genetic models or morphological analyses. While this information is helpful to delineate the function of these proteins to support spermatogenesis, they are not helpful to identify the regulatory signaling proteins, the signaling pathways and the cascade of events to modulate actin cytoskeleton dynamics. Recent studies based on the use of toxicant models, both in vitro and in vivo, however, have bridged this gap by identifying putative regulatory and signaling proteins of actin cytoskeleton. Herein, we summarize and critically evaluate these findings. We also provide a hypothetical model by which actin cytoskeletal dynamics in Sertoli cells are regulated, which in turn supports spermatid transport across the seminiferous epithelium, and at the blood-testis barrier (BTB) during the epithelial cycle of spermatogenesis.     

Systematic review: Predictors of students’ success in baccalaureate nursing programs

Nursing schools strive to select a diverse student population who are likely to succeed by ensuring timely student progression through the program and effective use of educational sources. The purpose of this systematic literature review is to explore the preadmission variables and selection criteria that predict student success in 4-year baccalaureate nursing programs in the U.S. Sixteen articles met the eligibility criteria, and six measures were used to define student success: (a) early academic success, particularly during the first and second year; (b) attrition; (c) timely completion of the program; (d) graduation; (e) performance in nursing courses; and (f) academic performance in other science courses. Typically, the core set of cognitive predictors used in the admission process in nursing schools were pre-nursing GPA, pre-nursing collegiate science GPA, and scores on standardized aptitude exams. This review suggests that it is challenging to isolate one single variable as the best predictor of student success; however, using a combination of variables can offer a reliable prediction method. More researchers should consider using a theoretical basis to guide their inquiry on this topic. Additionally, researchers should examine admission variables that are most relevant across programs.